I Thought I Was Dead After Getting Stabbed While Protecting a Girl From a Random Attacker, but a Goddess Gave Me a Special Reward and Brought Me Back to Life in My Original Body—Now, All These Girls Are Coming on to Me!?

Chapter 13: Understanding Each Other’s Feelings

I had no regrets about interrupting Nishino-kun’s confession, and even now, knowing the outcome, I would have taken the same action if faced with the same situation.

However, when asked if my action was good for the two of them, I honestly lacked confidence. After all, in front of the entire class, I did something that seemed almost like a confession.

But still, I couldn’t stop myself.

Even though my romantic experience was practically zero, I wasn’t so dense as to miss the affection they directed toward me.

I also knew about their negative feelings toward Nishino-kun.

And above all, I felt jealous myself.

I wanted to claim that I was the closest to them.

Yes, it seemed I had fallen in love with both of them.

They supported me devotedly during my hospital stay,

they stayed by my side constantly after I returned to school,

and above all, living together with them felt so comfortable.

Did anyone think a teenage boy could avoid developing feelings for such girls? Impossible…!

But even after all this, I pathetically believed I couldn’t respond to their feelings.

I couldn’t choose just one of them.

Naturally, I found each of them incredibly charming.

If I hadn’t connected with them so deeply, I probably would have confessed to one of them, as I liked them that much.

But now, I couldn’t think that way anymore.

Because I realized their charm shone brightest when they laughed together.

I, lacking courage, couldn’t dare change the relationship between them.

I was prepared to be criticized for making such a scene in front of the class.

Still, I thought it would be dishonest to keep spending time with them while letting them hold onto expectations.

So, on this way home, I decided to apologize properly.

“Man, it’s still chilly at night, huh?” Makoto says.

“I’m glad I brought a jacket,” Kanade adds.

The two walked ahead of me, but their voices clearly sounded nervous.

They were definitely still affected by what happened earlier.

“Hey, you two, can I have a moment?” I ask.

“Uh, sure! Take as long as you need!” Makoto replies.

“As long as you need is a bit much…” Kanade mutters.

“I’m fine anytime, anywhere, forever,” Makoto says.

“That’s even heavier…” I respond.

We stopped at a park along the way.

We sat on a bench in one corner of the park, but an awkward atmosphere made it hard for me to speak.

“Um, Minase-kun, thanks for earlier,” Makoto says.

“Oh, uh… yeah…” I mumble.

I thought they both called me ‘Ryu’ when I stood up to Nishino-kun earlier… No, don’t overthink it, Ryu.

“If things had gone on like that, we probably would have lashed out at him. I don’t think we could have ended it so peacefully,” Makoto says.

“Yeah, as expected…?” I reply.

“Yeah. But more than that, I was so happy that Minase-kun truly understood our feelings,” Makoto says.

“Exactly. Knowing that Minase-kun understood our desire to be with him made coming to today’s gathering worthwhile,” Kanade adds.

Their profiles showed no more worry. They often frowned lately because of Nishino-kun, so seeing their usual smiles felt nice.

…Yes, I needed to say it now.

I couldn’t keep avoiding their feelings. Come on, Ryu, be brave.

“I have something I need to tell you both,” I say.

“Something you need to tell…?” Makoto asks.

“What’s with the sudden seriousness?” Kanade says.

They looked at me with puzzled expressions.

“About earlier… I need to apologize to you both,” I say.

“Apologize? I don’t recall anything…” Makoto says.

“We were helped again. If anyone should apologize, it’s us, not Minase-kun,” Kanade says.

“Well… in front of everyone, I said something that could be taken as me liking both of you…” I explain.

“Oh, that…” Makoto says.

“…” Kanade stays silent.

I deliberately avoided clear words like ‘dating,’ but at the very least, people probably misunderstood that I was competing with Nishino-kun over them.

“I acted on my own without asking your feelings. I’m really sorry,” I say.

I stood up from the bench and bowed deeply to them.

Then, Hiragi-san suddenly spoke.

“Minase-kun, do you hate me?” Makoto asks.

“No way,” I reply.

“Then, do you like me?” she asks.

“That’s…” I hesitate.

“Not as a friend. Could you see me as a girlfriend?” she presses.

“Can I be honest?” I ask.

“Yeah. I want to know your true feelings,” Makoto says.

“I find you incredibly attractive, Hiragi-san. If I could have you as a girlfriend, I’d be thrilled,” I say.

“…Got it. Come on, Kanade!” Makoto says, nudging Sumeragi-san’s arm.

Prompted by her, Sumeragi-san spoke.

“…Minase-kun,” Kanade says.

“…Yes,” I reply.

“I like you, Minase-kun,” she says.

“Sumeragi-san…” I respond.

“Since you protected me back then, I could only think about your strong back,” she says.

“That’s…” I start.

“Would you hate being with me?” Kanade asks.

“No way, absolutely not. I really enjoy being with both of you,” I say.

When I said that, they looked at each other and smirked.

A chilling sensation ran down my spine, and my body shivered. What was this feeling… I might be acting a bit strange.

Hiragi-san stood up.

“This might be unfair, but if I confessed to you now, would you say yes?” Makoto asks.

“…Sorry,” I say.

“Why not?” she asks.

“Why, you ask…” I mumble.

Then, Hiragi-san slowly stood, took my right arm, and linked it with hers.

…Her arm!?

“H-Hiragi-san!?” I exclaim.

“What if it’s me?” Kanade says, taking my left arm.

“Sumeragi-san!? Hold on, you two…” I protest.

“I’ve never seen Minase-kun so flustered!” Makoto says.

“Yeah, I got Minase-kun’s first,” Kanade adds.

What was this girl saying…?

Wait, something’s off. Didn’t I just reject Hiragi-san’s confession?

So why was this happening? Was this a dream?

“You two! Let go for a second…” I say.

“If you tell me why you can’t date me, I might consider talking!” Makoto says.

“Same here,” Kanade adds.

“It’s… well…” I stammer.

“What’s that?” Makoto asks.

“Well, I’m fine staying like this forever,” Kanade says.

Was I completely at their mercy?

This wasn’t how I planned things…

“Alright, alright, I’ll confess! Just let go!” I say.

“Fine, I suppose,” Makoto says.

“If it’s a weird reason, I’ll hug you again,” Kanade warns.

What’s a weird reason…?

“…Do I really have to say it?” I ask.

“Kanade!” Makoto prompts.

“Okay!” Kanade says.

Swoosh!

Like basketball defenders, they flanked me on both sides, clearly intending to keep me there until I explained.

“…Alright,” I mumble.

“Huh? What?” Makoto asks.

“…I didn’t want…” I mutter.

“Can’t hear you. Louder,” Kanade says.

“I didn’t want to ruin your relationship!” I shout.

They froze at my words.

“Huh, both of us…?” Makoto asks, pointing between herself and Kanade.

“Yeah… If I dated one of you, it’d reduce your time together, right? But I love seeing you two together, so I didn’t want to take that away… I know, don’t say it! I get that it’s just a selfish guy’s arrogant thinking!” I say.

“That’s… the reason?” Makoto asks.

“…I’m speechless,” Kanade says.

Hearing my lame excuse, they whispered to each other.

Yeah, it’s creepy, right? Not many guys think like this.

“I’m really sor—“If both of us are okay, then it’s fine!” Makoto interrupts. “…Huh?”

I’m really sorry. What did she just say?

—

No way.

On the way back from the gathering, when Minase-kun stopped us, I had a feeling it’d be about this.

I figured he’d reject a confession. That part was as expected.

So, we planned with Makoto beforehand to close the distance little by little… that was the plan.

“I love seeing you two together, so I didn’t want to take that away,” Ryu said.

No way.

Joy wasn’t enough to describe the emotion filling me.

Minase-kun thought the same way we did.

If so, there was no barrier between us anymore.

“If both of us are okay, then it’s fine!” I shouted.

I sensed Minase-kun cared for us, but I also knew he drew a line at dating.

I planned to work hard to become his after hearing his reasons, but I never imagined he understood us so deeply.

After hearing that, I couldn’t hold back. Not that I planned to.

“Both together, that’s a bit…” Ryu says.

“So, make both me and Kanade your girlfriends!” I say.

“…I don’t understand…” Ryu says.

“You like both me and Kanade, right?” I ask.

“…Honestly, yeah,” he says.

“I love you, Minase-kun,” I say.

“…I’m so happy to hear that. But…” he hesitates.

“I love Kanade too,” I say.

“…? Obviously,” Ryu says, tilting his head.

He probably didn’t get it.

Normally, hearing that your crush valued a friend equally would be a shock. But that showed how much he cherished our relationship.

“I want the three of us to be together forever,” I say.

“Hiragi-san…” Ryu says.

“I feel the same,” Kanade says.

Then, Kanade spoke.

“With Minase-kun and Makoto. At school, on the way home, after school, and beyond. I want to be together forever. I’ll do anything for that,” Kanade says.

“Sumeragi-san too…” Ryu says.

“Minase-kun… no, Ryu-kun, I’ll say it again. Please go out with us!” I say.

“Please!” Kanade adds.

We reached out our hands toward Ryu-kun.